Four buildings evacuated after “suspicious package” found on campus

Students in Hashinger Science Center, the Irvine Lecture Hall, Moulton Hall and Argyros Forum were told to evacuate at 12:04 pm after reports of a suspicious package found in Hashingers’s basement. The areas were blocked off with caution tape and students were told to stay away. Photos by ANGELINA HICKS, editor-in-chief

Students in four buildings were told to evacuate earlier today due to concerns regarding a suspicious package found on campus.

The package was located in the basement area of the Hashinger Science Center. An initial Panther Alert was sent out at 11:48 a.m. informing students about police activity in the area.

Officers from the Orange Police Department were dispatched to check the area, and all students and faculty within Hashinger were told to evacuate.

At 12:04 p.m., a second Panther Alert ordered everyone currently in the Irvine Lecture Hall, Argyros Forum and Moulton Hall — three buildings near Hashinger — to evacuate as well.

Sophia Farchione, a graduate student studying leadership development, was in Argyros Forum when the evacuation was called. She was tabling in the building to promote wellness and recreation initiatives when Public Safety officers came in and told everyone to leave the building.

“I didn’t feel any panic; it was very organized and calm,” Farchione told The Panther. “Nobody really seemed scared.”

She said the officers didn’t give any reason for the evacuation, but she eventually discovered the context when she saw the Panther Alerts.

Caution tape was put up blocking all students from walking around the area near these buildings. Crowds gathered where walkways were blocked off, but the rest of the campus was unaffected and classes continued in other buildings.

At 1:08 p.m., the caution tape was lifted and students were let back into the area.

Valentyna Simon, a junior psychology major, was another student affected by the evacuations. Simon, who works in the Office of Admission in Argyros Forum, was locked out of the building and unable to retrieve her belongings until the evacuation was lifted.

“I was out to eat in the circle with my mom who is in town for the weekend. Then I got the Panther Alert,” Simon told The Panther. “When I got back to campus I tried to grab my backpack — which had my laptop and car keys — that I left in the Office of Admission, but I was unable to get in. Everything was blocked off with caution tape, and I had to wait outside in a crowd of confused Panthers before being let into the building.”

At 1:08 p.m., the caution tape was lifted and students were let back into the area. At 1:12 p.m., a final Panther Alert notified students the area was all clear. Faculty, staff and students were able to return to Hashinger, Moulton, Argyros Forum and the Irvine Lecture Hall.

The Orange County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad was on the scene and remvoed the package, along with Orange police and firefighters.

“Public Safety received a report of a suspicious package in Hashinger Hall,” Rick Gonzalez, chief of Public Safety, wrote in a statement sent to The Panther. “We responded immediately and evacuated the building. We contacted the Orange Police department, the Orange Fire Department and the Orange County Sheriff’s Bomb Squad. The agencies took all the necessary precautions to evaluate the package and eventually deemed it not a threat.”

Editor’s note: This story was updated March 3 to include a statement sent to The Panther by Rick Gonzalez, chief of Public Safety